Explanation wanted boys...?

Question: I've been sat playing Duck Hunt on my old, faithful, original Nintendo, and I can't for the life of me work out how the orange/grey gun I have in my hands actually works!? How do the ducks know they've been shot on the telly? And why cant I play Duckhunt on my flatscreen tv, why do I have to use my old set?

Answer: You're going to give yourself such a smack when you hear this one. Stripped of the high-tech accoutrements (by 1980s standards, anyway), it's the oldest trick in the book. You think you're using the gun to shoot at the TV, right? But really the TV is shooting the gun. Here's what happens. You shoot at a duck, which appears on an ordinary TV screen. The gun is connected to the game console; pressing the trigger blackens the screen, then causes a duck-shaped white target to appear momentarily. If your aim is true, a photo sensor in the gun detects the shift from dark to light, and bingo--dead duck. In short, the TV emits the light pulse and the gun detects it, not the other way around.

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